Celtics’ Jayson Tatum Knew Olympic Experience Would Thrill Joe Mazzulla

BOSTON — Celtics star Jayson Tatum was an afterthought in the Paris Olympics, logging two DNPs while averaging 17.7 minutes per game and becoming a social media trend for sitting on the bench.

Tatum, alongside Celtics teammates Jrue Holiday and Derrick White, teamed up with LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant and other NBA superstars to form an elite Team USA roster, poised to steamroll the global competition. For the most part, USA Basketball head coach Steve Kerr brought those expectations to life, albeit at the cost of nearly crumbling in upset fashion to South Sudan and tip-toeing the line of elimination against Nikola Jokić and Team Serbia in the semifinals.

Watching from the sidelines for most of the gold medal run, Tatum knew how Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla would react to his limited Olympics playing time.

“In real-time it was tough,” Tatum said Tuesday during media day at Auerbach Center. “I talked to Joe (Mazzulla) a lot. Joe was probably the happiest person in the world that I didn’t win Finals MVP and that I didn’t play in two of the games of the Olympics. So, that was odd, but you know Joe. It makes sense. Did I need any extra motivation coming into the season? No. I’m not gonna give anybody, in particular, credit that they motivated me coming into the season. It was a unique circumstance. Something I haven’t experienced before in my playing career, but I’m a believer that everything happens for a reason.

“I was coming off a championship, the highest of the highs — (the) cover of “(NBA) 2K.” a new contract and that happened, and whatever the reason is, I haven’t figured it out yet. But I am a believer that everything does happen for a reason.”

Boston’s five-time All-Star averaged just 5.3 points, 1.3 assists and one steal for Team USA, shooting an abysmal 0-for-16 on jump shot attempts, including an uncharacteristic 3-point bricks off the side of the backboard against South Sudan. As unfair and difficult as the circumstances made it for Tatum to perform in limited action, Kerr was anything but sympathetic with the 26-year-old. Kerr used vague language to address Tatum’s minimal playing time and failed to justify that coaching decision by sliding past Team France in the gold medal contest.

Mazzulla, who made stops in his hometown of Rhode Island and the Dominican Republic with returning veteran Al Horford, immediately booked a flight to France in order to support Tatum and provide the eight-year veteran with a check-in.

The non-traditional approaches, whether they’d be in watching film, tackling specific in-game scenarios or looking for an applicable learning lesson in everyday life, make Mazzulla the perfect coach to lean on for Tatum. Mazzulla doesn’t buy into mourning the negativity but instead preaches the open-mindedness required to flip life’s mental challenges — especially those on the basketball court — into motivating fuels by inserting a broader perspective. It brought the Celtics to new heights last season, lifting the team to a league-best 64 wins in the regular season before capturing Banner 18.

Tatum, an NBA champion and two-time Olympic gold medalist, should be just fine, too. With a record-setting $315 million contract, a championship ring and a mostly-retained reigning championship roster, Tatum has just about everything he needs in Boston to succeed and avenge the 2024 Olympic experience — even if it’s not on the list of priorities heading into the new season.